


The Guilty Party

by Hamsternio



Category: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter-centric, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony-centric, Worried Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2018-05-11
Packaged: 2018-12-26 14:27:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12060861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hamsternio/pseuds/Hamsternio
Summary: Tony has finally been fulfilling his duties to Peter as a mentor. When they get in a car crash on the way to the tower, how will Tony cope with the overwhelming fear for Peter's life?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In this story i'm pretending that Tony never sold the tower or he bought it back, i’m not entirely sure, all i know is that the tower is still in Tony's possession in this fic.   
> Also this is my first ever fanfiction so please be kind.

"Hop in, kiddo." Mr Stark said as he opened the door to the sleek black car and gestured inside. Peter still couldn't believe he was going to dinner with his childhood hero Tony Stark despite it being a weekly occurrence now. Since he had passed Tony’s little test and declined the “offer” to join the Avengers, the two had been communicating almost daily and Peter would often find Happy waiting for him outside school (sometimes Mr Stark would have the forethought to tell Peter beforehand and sometimes it seemed to slip his mind). Mr Stark had even cleared a workstation in _his own personal workshop_ for Peter to use for crafting robots or designing new web fluids or anything he could imagine. Peter loved workshop time with Mr Stark - the witty repartee that they had going never failed to put a smile on his face.

“Hey. Hey kid. Helloooooo? Earth to Peter?”. Tony's voice cut through Peter’s reflection as he looked up and saw Mr Stark clicking his fingers in an attempt to get his attention. “Sorry! Sorry Mr Stark.”, Peter exclaimed and shook his head in an attempt to bring him back to the here and now. He jolted forward and rushed inside the open door Mr Stark was still holding open for him. “Jeez kid, how many times am I going to tell you to call me Tony?”

The car was stopped at traffic lights that Peter could've sworn had taken hours to change and would used Happy’s grumpy expression in the mirror as evidence.

“So, how was school?”, Tony asked, locking his phone, sliding it into his pocket and turning his body to face the teenage boy on the seat next to him.

“Oh it was good, great actually because in biology we were learning more in depth about nerves and impulses and how chemical messages are carried across synapses and we also talked about psychosomatic limbs and how it can affect the lives of amputees and …”

Peter trailed off as he looked back at his mentor who was looking at his with a stifled chuckle on his lips.

“Don't get me wrong Pete, I love to hear you so excited about science but sometimes I wonder how long you’d be able to talk for before you ran out of air.”, Tony jested with a laugh. Peter looked at his lap, willing himself not to blush with the embarrassment of his word vomit but also at the idea that _Tony Stark liked to hear him talk._ The car’s engine rumbled underneath them as they pulled forward now that the infernal traffic lights had changed to green.

“So,” Tony began to speak again with Peter listening intently, “I’ve been thinking about some upgrades for your suit and -”

Peter felt a sharp pang in the back of his head and Tony's thoughts were cut off by a semi hitting the passenger side of the vehicle at full force. The sides of the car caved in and crumpled, throwing Peter, Tony and Happy sideways. All Peter felt was pain, immense immeasurable pain. His eyes closed and all he saw was black.

The ringing came before anything else. A constant ringing in his ears was followed again by the pain which had spiked and the most intense feeling seemed to originate from his abdomen. He blinked slowly, cracking open his eyes and peering down at the source. Peter saw rough hands applying pressure with a scrap of fabric soaked in blood. His blood. He felt breath on his face and looked straight ahead to find that Tony was the one applying the pressure with a furrowed brow and pleading eyes. His lips were moving but Peter still only heard the incessant ringing and his eyes began to droop closed. Peter willed his eyes to stay open but he seemed to be fighting a losing battle until parts of his hearing began to fizzle back in like a radio being re-tuned. He heard sirens in the distance and more importantly his name being repeated over and over with an overwhelming amount of desperation.

“Peter! No no no no, Peter, hey Peter, keep those eyes open okay? You need to stay with me here.” Peter couldn't bring himself to conjure words so he just whimpered weakly in response. “Help is coming buddy, just hold on a while longer.”

He could hear the sirens drawing closer in the background but his body couldn't take anymore. Peter’s eyes dropped closed.

“Oh shit! He’s out again.”

The sirens were at their loudest and Tony could see flashing lights in his peripheral vision. Ambulance doors slammed and a sea of medics rushed towards the totalled car. Tony was pulled away by a pair while the majority set to work applying pressure to Peter, doing their best to stabilise him. The pairs coaxing and soothing just annoyed Tony as he was already set on edge by guilt and worry.

“Mr Stark sir, we have to check you over sir”

Firemen had also arrived with the EMTs and were currently cutting away the wreckage of the car so that they could get the teenager out properly. They had already cut away the slightly less damaged passenger door of the side Tony was sitting in and pulled him out reluctantly. Tony was standing as close to Peter as possible, insistent that he would go no further away. He could hear the EMT repeat her earlier statement but he chose to ignore her. The firemen finished cutting away the doors and the EMTs not currently applying pressure were securing his neck and head in blocks to stop them from moving as they transferred him to the gurney. They moved him gently and Tony watched them with baited breath and followed them as they pushed it to the ambulance. All was going considerably smoothly until they got to just before the open entrance of the ambulance. A shout rang out, an exclamation that made Tony want to drop to his knees.

“He’s crashing! Get the defib!” Tony let out a roar and attempted to run towards Peter, to let him know that he was still there but found himself restrained by two of the larger, male EMTs. He continued to fight their hold and struggle in a frantic attempts to reach Peter until Happy ran over with surgical plasters on his cuts and a sling wrapped over his left arm.

“Tony! Tony stop!”

“I have to be there Hap, I have to help him!” Tony begged desperately.

“Boss, there's nothing you can do for him right now, let the EMTs do their job” Tony stopped actively pulling against the men restraining him but he set his jaw, silently willing Peter to pull through, knowing that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't make it. The team of paramedics had already made one unsuccessful attempt at returning Peter’s heart rate to normal and were about to make another.

“Clear!” The EMT shouted before he pressed the pads down onto Peter’s chest and Peter's body convulsed upwards which made Tony feel sick to his stomach. After a few seconds which felt like hours, a steady beep started to emanate from the monitor replacing the constant drone from before. Tony breathed a sigh of relief.

“Boss, we really have to get you checked out now”, Happy said as he urged him forwards gently cupping the back of his upper arm Tony gave a slight, weary nod and began to follow the two EMTs who were tasked with dealing with him to the designated ambulance. He had only just managed to put his right foot forward and bring the other to join it when his sight started to look out of focus. Everything before him blurred into one giant clump of colours. Tony blinked aggressively in an attempt to clear his vision but it quickly became overwhelming. He couldn't keep up with the moving shapes anymore. He felt his eyes close and then gravity take effect on his limp, passive body.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow guys this got a far better reach and reception than I was expecting! Thank you all for your support. I'm trying my best to get chapters out in a timely manner but it's difficult because I'm primarily an artist rather than a writer so I have to make time for both. Thanks for your patience <3

Tony Stark was beginning to rouse from his slumber. He heard the constant beep beep beep of a monitor and his eyes fluttered open. The lights were blinding and he began to squint around the room trying to distinguish his surroundings. Tony realised that he was in a private room in the old avengers med bay that he kept operational in case of emergencies with the kid.

The kid. Oh no, the kid. Suddenly all of Tony’s memories came flooding back and he audibly choked at remembering. 

“What  _ were  _ you thinking? Tony, you almost  _ bled out.” _

Pepper’s voice rang out through the small secluded room and the sudden increase in sound made Tony wince.

“How long have I been out Pepper? Where is he?”

Pepper’s demeanor softened, she walked over to his bedside silently and took his hand in hers.

“You've been out for just over an hour Tone. They’re still operating on him and yes, before you ask, I made sure he had the best surgeons that money could buy. The healing factor is making it more difficult because every incision is knitting back together before they can complete the procedures. We're not entirely sure when he’ll be out but he seems to be stable.”

The fact that Peter was still alive and that his healing factor was still working made Tony let out a sigh of relief before guilt flooded him as he realised that he and Happy had come out relatively unscathed in comparison to the kid.

“I've gotta get out of this bed Pep, sitting here is driving me insane and I've only been awake for about five minutes.” Tony said as he began to yank wires away from his body and move the sheets away from impeding his movement. He was already set on edge by the situation he was currently in and having flashbacks to what happened in Afghanistan, being wired to the car battery wasn't exactly making it any better.

“Tony, Tony slow down, you're gonna have to use a wheelchair for the next week or so, you broke your leg in the impact. You should probably be taking it slow anyway, you've got a lot of dark bruising on your abdomen and chest and you've just woken up from being unconscious.”

Tony shuffled reluctantly into the chair, resenting the idea that he’d have to be dependent on someone until he could get to grips with crutches.

“Pepper, not that I'm complaining but shouldn't you be in meetings or something being the badass CEO that you are?” He jested, trying to bring back an air of normalcy over the suffocating sense of doom and gloom.

“I’m taking a few weeks off, just until you and Peter get back on your feet.”

Tony appreciated her inclusion of Peter, after all she probably knew how much the kid meant to him before he did.

“I have to get to the operating theatre Pepper.”

“I'm not sure that's a good idea -”

“Please Pepper, I’m not going to believe he’s alive until i see him. Please.” 

Pepper was taken aback. She knew the kid meant a lot to him but he was  _ pleading _ . Usually Tony didn't even ask but now he was begging. She made a mental note to officially meet this teen when he woke, curious about how he had such an effect on Tony.

“Okay, I'll take you there.”

Tony nodded in relief and they spent the rest of the journey in solemn silence; Tony had run out of witty things to say.

Eventually they reached the gallery of the operating theatre and Pepper pushed Tony up to the window. Inside they saw several surgeons wearing aqua scrubs and plastic gloves. Some were watching the monitors, others holding apparatus and right at the center of the procedures was Dr. Helen Cho. Tony trusted her more than any other doctor so it was a relief to see her there in charge yet still sickening to have to see Peter, completely still and attached to so many machines.

“Does May know?” Tony asked without so much as a glance away from the glass.

“We’ve been calling and trying to get in contact with her but her phone is going straight to voicemail. We’ll keep trying until we get a response.” Pepper replied.

“FRIDAY can you help Pepper get through to May on the emergency line. Also, keep me notified of  _ any  _ developments to do with Peter. If  _ anything  _ changes I want to know. I can't sit here looking at him like this anymore.

“Make it in about 5 minutes FRIDAY, I'm going to take Tony back to the common room.”

“Confirmed Ms Potts”

The long walk to the elevator began in the solemn silence that was getting strangely familiar to Tony but it wasn't long before it was broken by Pepper.

“You have an emergency line to May Parker? How does it work?”

Tony sighed. “As soon as Peter told me that May knew, I let her simmer down a little so she would be less likely to give me black eye. Then i had a very embarrassing and awkward meeting with Ms Parker who insulted me throughout but I think she knew deep down that Peter wasn't going to stop. I gave her a burner phone enabled for incoming and outgoing calls to my number only so that if she or I ever found Peter in dire circumstances we could immediately contact the other. We both swore to never turn off the ringer. I have the burner phone still but the number and details are implemented into FRIDAYs system.”

Pepper was impressed at his responsibility and by the time Tony had explained all about the emergency phone, they had arrived at the common room. She wheeled him as close as she could to a sofa and helped to deposit him into it. 

“Go and get through to may, Pepper. I'll be fine.”

“I know you will and so will he.”, Pepper replied affectionately dropping a soft kiss on his temple and brushing his hair out of his eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this story has become a thing where each chapter, a different character tries to convince Tony that the accident wasn't his fault. We'll see how this comes out shall we?  
> Also, just to preface, I haven't actually SEEN civil war yet so anything I know is completely from other fanfics or what i've heard. If any of it's inaccurate, I'm sorry I'm completely ignorant to it :D.  
> One last thing, sorry for the delay in getting this up, I struggled a bit with this chapter and then life got in the way as well. I'm trying to make each chapter somewhere around the 1000 word mark so you guys have something of substance to read. The next one might take a bit longer than I would optimally like because I've barely written any of it yet. I really appreciate your support.

Tony settled back into the couch which was one of the most used pieces of furniture in the whole building. It was worn down in places and was strangely more comforting and cozy as a result. Comforting and cozy was exactly what he needed right now but he wasn’t quite feeling the full effects. His fretting was overpowering, lording above everything else.

Tony sat with his hands cradling his face, eyes closed buried deep in his palms. Nothing in the world seemed to be able to break this trance-like state of his, full of his burdens and anxiety. Only numbness and his need to be strong for Peter was keeping him from having a full on anxiety attack right here on this very comforting couch.

In the midst of his haze, he heard a very distinct and intentional yet soothing clearing of a throat and tentatively glanced up to see the bottom of a white lab coat hanging loosely around a navy pencil skirt. This made him jump to attention as he realised it was Dr. Cho standing before him. He tried to stand but soon stopped when splitting pain stabbed from his leg and collapsed back onto the couch.

“What? What’s happened? How is he? Is he out of surgery?”

“He’s stable. We did our best and we’re hoping he’ll recover quickly.

“Hoping?”

“Yes. Unfortunately the extent of his injuries, the shock from the accident and the strength of the anaesthetic we had to use to keep him asleep have caused him to slip into a coma. We’re hoping that once the anaesthetic starts to wear off, his healing factor will be able to bring him around.”

Tony blinked a few times, trying to process the fact that Peter Parker was in a coma. He wouldn’t hear his babble for a while at least and he would continue to look as deathly ill as he did when he saw him in the operating theatre. He tried not to dwell on the fact that nothing was guaranteed, not even Peter ever waking up.

“Okay, thank you Helen.” Tony said in a monotone voice, no longer making eye contact with Dr. Cho, instead looking straight ahead, eyes glazed over.

Everything was not in fact ‘okay’. Tony felt his jaw start to tremble and tears brewing in his eyes. 

Helen Cho gave a crisp nod and turned on her heel, walking out of the room, knowing that he wouldn’t appreciate her sympathy at this very moment.

“Boss, I have been instructed to inform you that Ms. Potts has been able to reach May Parker. A chauffeur and Happy Hogan have been sent to collect her. Unfortunately she was out of Queens on a mandatory hygiene and bedside manner training course today and it will take several hours for her arrival.”

Tony rubbed his calloused hands over his weary face, well aware of the guilty feeling holding his thoughts hostage. He'd seen Spider-man hurt on countless occasions, usually only scrapes and bruises although he'd taken care of the odd bullet wound or stab in his time as peter's mentor. If Peter hadn't had such an efficient healing factor, he would've seen a lot more of the Avengers med-bay. It slowly dawned on Tony why this time was far more painful than the others. The severity of his injuries contributed to it but mostly, it was because this wasn't spider-man getting hurt while kicking a bad guy's ass. This was Peter Parker, an innocent 15 year old.

His coffee sat on the table, going cold as Tony sat worrying on the common room sofa, head still in his hands. He felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder and he looked up to see Rhodey as the body behind the hand.

"He'll be fine Tony. He's a little fighter"

"I hope so. I just can't help feeling like it's my fault." came the reply. Tony placed his head back in his hands and heard the slight mechanical whirring as Rhodey's mechanical legs bent to allow him to sit down. 

"Happy's gone to get May”, he said, his words muffled by his hands. "She's already not my biggest fan since she found out that Peter's Spider-man. How am I going to face her now that he's gotten injured  _ again _ while in my care?"

"Tony it was an  _ accident _ . May will understand. Car accidents happen all the time and thankfully Peter has the best possible care money could buy. Cho operated and he's in good hands."

They sat in silence for several minutes while Tony attempted to pull himself back together.

“Sitting here is only making it worse and i hate to be so dependant on someone to help me move. I’m going to practice manoeuvring this piece of junk,” indicating the standard issue wheelchair “down the hallway to Peter's room.”

Rhodey was certain he knew how Tony felt about the dependency. The brief period of time he spent stuck in one place after the incident because he had no means of moving was almost torture. 

“Cho left these for you. She says that now you've had a couple hours to get over the shock, you can use the crutches and once you've healed up more she'll get you in a walking boot.”

Rhodey was confident and stable enough in his new metal legs to be able to help Tony to his feet - well foot actually considering he still couldn't apply pressure to his injured leg - and help him get adjusted and comfortable with the crutches at his side.

“I’ll have to look into inventing memory foam pads for these handles. The plastic digs.”

“Y’know, normal people just put fluffy socks over them.”

“When have you ever know me to be like normal people?”

They chuckled to themselves as they set off for Peter’s room, the comedic conversation between the two making it feel almost like nothing had happened. Almost.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hah ha ha. Remember when i said i would try to get these chapters up at a regular pace? That was 3 months ago. 
> 
> Sorry guys, college got hectic and i lost motivation. I'm not really a writer, I'm actually far better at art and i kinda got overwhelmed by the amount of skill that fanfic writers have. My art course really did start to get in the way but HEY I'M BACK NOW AND THATS ALL THAT REALLY MATTERS, RIGHT???
> 
>  
> 
> Without further ado, on with the show!

Before long, they had arrived at the door of Peter’s medbay room. It was pulled just to, a sliver open. Rhodey gave Tony one last comforting pat on the back before turning to go about his business as quietly as he possibly could, considering the hydraulics in his legs always made some small sounds whenever he moved. He understood that, as much as they were best friends and trusted each other, there would be things that Tony would want to be alone for. 

After a few moments, Tony gathered up the courage to lightly push the door open, and let it slowly swing inwards on its hinges. He was taken aback by what he saw. While he had been expecting the worst, he hadn't fully prepared himself for the bubbly, full of energy teenager to look quite as frail and broken. Tony visibly sagged, guilt weighing down on him like a tonne of bricks.

He surveyed the room, taking it all in. The high-tech, visibly expensive machines that Peter's resting body was hooked up to surrounded the general area around the bed. They emitted a quiet yet noticeable beep corresponding with Peter’s heart rate. Tony had never been so glad to hear such an annoying noise.  
Nestled in the corner of the room closest to Peter's bedside sat a black plush armchair and matching footstool. The clinical lights reflected off the smooth velour.

Tony remembers ordering these specific couches, adamant to make the hospital space as comfortable as possible for guests and patients. He wanted to ensure that everyone who used his medbay would be given the best conditions. Just remembering waking up with a car battery hooked up to his chest in afghanistan sent a chill down his spine.

He took a deep breath in and used his crutches less than expertly to move towards Peter's side and pushed a lock of stray hair away from the fragile boy’s eyes.  
Tony settled down in the armchair and resigned himself to a night spent in a the chair rather than his bed. He tried to convince himself that he was doing it for the kid’s welfare and that he needed someone to look over him but it wasn't long before his expert denial skills began to fizzle out and he had to admit to himself that he was here because he wanted to be. He just about managed to get out a small, muttered “FRIDAY, wake me when May gets here.”, before dropping off to a fitful sleep full of worry.

"Boss, Ms Parker and Happy have arrived at the tower.", in a slightly quieter and less abrasive tone than she usually would use.  
Tony rubbed his face again and took a few calming breaths then said "Bring them up here FRIDAY."

Tony cast a quick look back over at Peter then hobbled quickly along the corridor to meet them at the elevator entrance.

As he approached the elevator, Tony could see May’s worry strewn face and he was sure he could've see it from a mile away. Just looking at her seemed to amplify the guilt that was eating away at his insides. May exploded from the elevator. 

“Where is he Tony?”  
“He’s in the med bay recovering from the op. I understand if you have to see him, I did too, but he’s as fine as he can be right now.” Tony said, looking rather sullen.  
Tony gestures to two nearby assistants. “Guys would you please escort Ms. Parker to the med bay? I'm sure she'd like to be there as soon as possible and I'm afraid I'd only slow her down.”  
The assistants nodded and began to lead May down the corridor as she threw a quick sympathetic half-smile over her shoulder back at Tony. He gave them a minute or two to allow her to get inside the room then followed at his broken and weak pace. He'd had two identical black plush armchairs placed outside Peter's room.

Tony jumped awake, startled at the sound of a purposeful cough. He blinked and shook his head a little then resumed his normal, confident posture.  
“Sorry, shut my eyes for a moment there May, what can i do for you?”  
May shot him an unimpressed look directed at his “I’m perfectly fine” facade.  
“I was just going to find some coffee. Would you like some?”  
“I will but you don't have to get it, I'll have some brought here. FRIDAY?”  
The ever present voice rang out, “Absolutely boss, I'll have two cups of the best brought up, made to each of your preferences.”  
“Thanks, but it was kind of an excuse to give myself something to do to take my mind off of… Anyway i sense that we should be having a conversation about all of this.”  
May sat down in the adjacent chair and turned to face Tony.  
“How are you? Are the painkillers too strong? Not strong enough?”  
“I know you really dont want to have a conversation about my wellbeing. I'm sorry May, this is all my fault.” Tony sighed, looking at his feet, deflated.  
“Tony Stark, of all the things I could be upset with you for - like enabling my nephew to run across rooftops at 3AM - this is not one of them. You were being a good mentor to him, picking him up from school and you got in an accident. It could've happened to anyone and I'm actually glad that its happened when he has someone who can pay for all of this state of the art equipment and the best doctors and nurses. If this had happened before all of this Spiderman craziness, he wouldn't have had care even half of all of this.”  
“Thankyou May but I still feel horribly guilty.”  
A warm cup of the richest coffee was delivered into their hands by an assistant who swiftly took their leave after both parties said a mumbled “thanks”.  
“I think that maybe that's not quite guilt Tony. I think it's just that worry you get deep in the pit of your stomach just after you see your child get properly hurt for the first time.”  
May quickly caught on to the shocked and scared look on Tony's face.  
“Not that I'm calling you a parent or him your child, its just that right now, you're the closest thing he has to a father and I can gather that it's the same vice versa.”  
Tony confirmed with a quick nod.  
“Come on, neither of us should be sitting outside this door right now, we should both be inside,” May said as she got to her feet and held the door open, gesturing for Tony to join her.  
He followed her through and shut the door gently.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I warned you guys at the beginning that updates were gonna be periodic, right? I'm back with this chapter because I just finished watching Infinity War but i want to stress that THERE WILL BE NO INFINITY WAR SPOILERS because im not following canon for that or anything past the end of Homecoming. Love you guys who support this fic even though I'm not a very consistent writer. Oh and this is going up through the mobile site so if there's any formatting issues, I'll fix them when I'm at a computer next but right now I just wanna get this chapter up :)
> 
> Just a little reminder that you can find me on most social media as Hamsternio or Hamsternioart (instagram, twitter, tumblr, youtube)

BEEP … BEEP … BEEP ...

At first, that was all there was. A constant beat and nothing else. No feeling in his limbs, no background noise, just the view of the panelled hospital ceiling and the steady pulse.  
Then it all came back in one fell swoop, rushing over like a tidal wave. He jolted upwards and tried to gasp some oxygen into his lungs but all he got was a mouthful of the plastic breathing tube that was forcefully inserted into his windpipe. It was suffocating and Peter began to thrash wildly.

 

In the waiting area outside of Peter’s room, Tony and May had finally given in to the exhaustion despite their best efforts to stay alert. May had her legs tucked in next to her on the chair while Tony sat far more awkwardly, legs askew to compensate for the bulk of his injured foot, arms slung over each chair arm and head lolled downwards; the very picture of involuntary and fitful sleep.   
Suddenly, the steady beep of the machines and the periodic clunk and whirr of the ventilator became a rapid beeping and Friday’s voice rang out:

“Peter’s awake boss.” 

Tony shot awake, grabbed his crutches and was shaking May awake before Friday even got through half of the word “awake”. He slung open Peter’s door, moving as fast as he could on his crutches and dropped them to the floor as he reached Peter’s side, with May following suit on the other side of the bed. She seemed to have no words as she watched him struggle against the breathing tube, getting more and more panicked. 

“Hey, hey, hey, buddy you gotta calm down, it was helping you breathe while you were… asleep. Look, here are the nurses, coming to take it out. Just a little longer bud.”, Tony said soothingly as he grasped Peter’s hand, trying to calm him, “C’mon, put it all into my hand, squeeze it as hard as you like”. It seemed to work as Peter was far less visually distressed apart from on his face where his eyebrows were deeply furrowed and there were tears streaming from his eyes.   
Nurses spilled through the door and began to unstrap the breathing tube   
“Okay, I’m about to take it out, but I need you to cough for me.”  
Peter kept his eyes on Tony as he coughed and the nurses pulled the tube from his throat. He spluttered and gasped, bent over, finally able to breathe through his mouth again. He released the pressure on Tony's hand to grasp at the bedsheets, twisting them in his hands. The nurses checked his machines and packed away their equipment then made an exit just as swift as their entrance, saying something about returning later with the doctor to do a more thorough check but no one was really listening.  
May seemed to snap back from her state of shock and said “Peter?”, in a near whisper.  
He grabbed her and pulled her close, grasping her as if he would never let go as she stroked his head gently.  
“So uhhh … I guess I should leave you to it…”, Tony said as he began to gather up his crutches and rise to his feet.  
Peter released his aunt from his grip and she sat down in the chair next to her.   
“Wait. Would you… would you stay? Please?”


End file.
